There have been several designs for an apparatus that supports a guitar or similar stringed instrument while in a seated playing position (U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,732,689; 7,205,468; 6,252,150; 6,005,175; 4,966,062 and 3,979,993). The current invention implements novel and improved mechanisms for both adjusting the instrument's position vis-à-vis the player and the means for attaching the support to the instrument.
An object of this invention is to provide a novel instrument support that can be securely attached to any acoustic guitar or like instrument regardless of the instrument's finished surface. Previous designs implemented plastic or rubber suction cups that do not adhere well to curved, recessed, worn, damaged, porous, delicate, oily, or otherwise imperfect surfaces (U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,205,468; 6,252,150; 6,005,175; 4,966,062). It is also well established that these attachment means can be deleterious to various finishes commonly found on stringed instruments such as lacquer and shellac. Furthermore, such contacting means require periodic replacement as their usefulness as an attachment mechanism decreases in time due to wear and/or material breakdown.
Other designs use an apparatus that supports the instrument from underneath but is not directly or securely attached to it (U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,732,689 and 3,979,993). The Support cushion (U.S. Pat. No. 3,979,993) is limited in both its adjustability and ease of storage, while the Foldable support (U.S. Pat. No. 7,732,689) only allows for vertical adjustment and not horizontal or angular adjustments. Further disadvantages of existing designs have been noted by Jiang & Yan (U.S. Pat. No. 7,732,689).
The current support alleviates the above mentioned issues by implementing magnets as the attachment means to the instrument and three discrete mechanisms for vertical, horizontal, and angular adjustments. Magnets or magnetic material attached to the support member attract magnets or magnetic material installed on or in the body of the instrument. Magnetic attraction is the mechanism by which the instrument support attaches to the instrument.
Substituting magnetic material (e.g. rare earth magnets) for suction cups allows the support to be smaller, more versatile, and have greater adjustability than previous suction cup-type supports. The size of the support is decreased and is thus more portable due to the relatively small size of the magnets needed for attaching the support to the instrument. The reduced footprint also increases versatility as the support can be attached to instruments that are too thin for suction-type supports. The strength of the magnets also improves adjustability as the magnets can withstand adjustments that would cause other attachment mechanisms to fail.
Magnets are implemented not only as an attachment means but also as a locating mechanism for the support. Magnets have the unique property of attracting other magnets or ferrous material and will “find” the magnets installed on the guitar ensuring consistent and proper placement of the support each time it is used. Setup time is further decreased because the adjustment settings do not need to be changed when collapsing and storing the support.
Three discrete mechanisms allow for vertical, horizontal, and angular adjustments. Vertical adjustments are achieved by adjusting the length of the flexible leg support member. The pivoting magnet housing allows horizontal adjustments while in playing position. These adjustments are made by moving the support longitudinally along the underside of the instrument. This adjustment is possible because the rotating magnet housing will conform to any contour on the underside of the instrument. The adjustable rigid support member allows angular adjustment of the instrument while in playing position. These adjustments are achieved by loosening the securing member and adjusting the overall length of the support.
These objects are achieved by a novel support that comprises a flexible leg support member connected to both an adjustable rigid support member with hinged pivoting magnet housing at one end and a second magnetic member at the other. The instrument support is held in place on the instrument by magnetic attraction or similar fields of a force.
An alternative embodiment of this invention substitutes a curved rigid leg support member for a flexible leg support member. A second adjustable rigid support member is implemented for greater versatility and adjustability. Furthermore, the leg support member rotates on an axis and rests flat on the player's leg to further increase comfort for the player. A toothed clutch mechanism holds the rotating leg support member in the desired position and adjustments are made by disengaging the toothed clutch and rotating the leg support member about an axis. Several mechanisms can be implemented to ensure proper engagement and disengagement of the clutch such as a spring or screw mechanism.
This summary is not intended to exhaust all possible embodiments of the invention, nor is it intended to determine the scope of the claimed matter. It is a general explanation of the benefits, intended uses, and possible embodiments of the invention contained herein.